How a Custom Itinerary Comes Together: From First Enquiry to e-Vouchers

Most people have never seen what happens between “we’re thinking about Japan in November” and stepping onto the plane with everything arranged. Here’s the process at Pack Ya Bags Travel, step by step — partly because we’re often asked, and partly because knowing how it works makes you a sharper client of any travel agency, ours included.

Step 1: The brief (one conversation)

We start with the questions that actually shape a trip: who’s travelling, what pace suits you, what you loved and hated about past holidays, the dates you can’t move, and the budget range you’re comfortable with. Fifteen minutes by phone or email usually does it. The best briefs include the honest stuff — “we had a terrible group tour once”, “one of us hates museums” — because that’s what we design around.

Step 2: The proposal

Within a few days you get a draft itinerary: day-by-day flow, accommodation suggestions with the reasoning, transfers and touring marked, and pricing. This is a conversation starter, not a contract — the second version, after your reactions, is nearly always the better trip. We work for travellers across Australia and New Zealand, so flights are quoted from your actual city, not a mainland default.

Step 3: Holds and refinement

While we refine, we place holds where the market is tight — the ryokan with twelve rooms, the safari camp with eight tents. Holds cost you nothing and expire harmlessly; what they buy is time to decide without losing the trip’s best pieces. This is, quietly, the biggest practical advantage an agency has over booking piecemeal online.

Step 4: Confirmation

You approve; we book. Deposits secure the arrangements and the balance follows closer to travel. You receive a confirmed itinerary showing exactly what’s included — and just as clearly, what isn’t, so there are no airport surprises.

Step 5: e-Vouchers and the paper trail

Before departure you receive your documents pack: the final itinerary and e-vouchers for each service — accommodation, transfers, tours — with confirmation numbers and local contact details for every supplier. Print them or carry them on your phone; either way, if anything wobbles on the ground, the person to call is on the page in your hand, and we’re behind them.

Your questions answered

Does a custom itinerary cost more than booking it myself?

Usually about the same, sometimes less — we buy at trade rates that offset our margin. What you’re really buying is design, holds on scarce inventory, and someone accountable when a flight cancels at 11pm.

How far ahead should I start?

Six to nine months for peak-season trips (Japan blossom, African safari, Europe summer); three to four months is comfortable for most everything else. Later is often still possible — the choice just narrows.

What if something goes wrong mid-trip?

You contact the local operator on your voucher, and us. Rebooking a missed connection or a closed attraction is our job, in your time zone or ours.

Thinking about your next trip? Start the conversation — the first step is only ever a chat.